Jenna Wilson
St. Joseph News-Press, Mo.
(TNS)
Sep. 6—A Savannah (Missouri) Police Department lieutenant has been charged with misdemeanor animal abuse after the death of K-9 officer Horus in June.
According to a probable cause statement from the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, Daniel Zeigler and his K-9 Partner Horus completed their overnight shift at 4:50 a.m., according to an Andrew County Dispatch Log.
Zeigler later contacted Savannah Police Chief Dave Vincent at 5:54 p.m. and informed him K-9 Horus was dead.
Vincent responded to Zeigler’s residence and found K-9 Horus deceased. Chief Vincent said K-9 Horus had been left in the Savannah Police K-9 vehicle following the end of their shift and had died of heat exposure, the probable cause statement said.
Kansas City International Airport, reported a high of 88 degrees Fahrenheit at 3:53 p.m. on June 20.
The statement said a witness/neighbor saw Horus deceased in the yard near the vehicle and said Zeigler was “flipping out” and yelling that he thought he brought Horus inside.
Another witness at the burial of Horus said that he heard Zeigler tell Vincent that Horus’ death was Zeigler’s fault.
Zeigler’s vehicle was tested for functionality in high temperatures, and the results showed that the AceK9 system was working in the car and had to be manually deactivated. AceK9 is a system that aims to protect police K-9s by sounding alarms or sending alerts when vehicles’ internal temperatures get too high. The probable cause statement said the deactivation of the system “directly contributed” to Horus’ death.
Maximum punishments for a Class A misdemeanor are a year in jail and a fine of $2,000. Vincent declined to comment on the case Friday afternoon.
A couple of Savannah residents said the charges are justified.
“I think he should have got manslaughter though because that poor dog did not deserve what he did,” Dawn Starling said. “I’ve met Horus before, and he was a really nice, sweet dog.”
Another resident said the attorney general’s office should have pressed charges because Horus was a specially trained dog that the city invested in.
“As a pet advocate, I just can’t tolerate just leaving the dog in the hot car and letting it die,” Mary Lynch said.
Lynch has trained dogs for years and understands how much work and obedience is involved in the process. She said she feels sorry for everyone involved but stressed the need for accountability.
“I know a lot of the officers and they need to be held responsible for it, too,” she said. “If I did that, I’m sure they would throw away the key.”
Starling lives close to Horus’ grave site, and she has seen many residents come by and pay their respects. She said she believes the announcement of the charges will begin the healing process in the community.
“I think it will,” she said. “I think everybody will be at ease. I think everybody will be really at ease with what’s going on and maybe the services will help them.”
A memorial service will be held for Horus at 10 a.m. on Saturday at his grave near South Third and West Benton streets.
Jenna Wilson can be reached at jenna.wilson@newspressnow.com.
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